ColourPress Pty Ltd T/A ColourPress Summary

[2013] FWCA 2737

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

ColourPress Pty Ltd T/A ColourPress
(AG2013/6065)

COLOURPRESS PRODUCTION EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE BARGAINING AGREEMENT 2013

Publishing industry
COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS	PERTH, 3 MAY 2013

Application for approval of the ColourPress Production Employees Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the ColourPress Production Employees Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by ColourPress Pty Ltd T/A ColourPress. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 10 May 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

ColourPress Pty Ltd, trading as ColourPress, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the ColourPress Production Employees Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2013. The respondents, who were the employees represented by the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union, opposed the application on various grounds, including the assertion that the agreement did not meet the criteria for being a 'simple' agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on the interpretation of the term "simple agreement" and whether the proposed agreement complied with the requirements of section 228 of the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission considered whether the agreement could be classified as a simple agreement by examining the nature and complexity of the provisions. The Commission highlighted that the definition of a simple agreement required the agreement to be of a kind prescribed by the regulations and to meet specific criteria, including having no more than ten employees and being free of complex provisions. The Commission further analysed the provisions of the agreement to determine if they met the prescribed criteria, considering factors such as the level of detail, the complexity of the language used, and the potential impact on the employees' working conditions.

After reviewing the agreement and the submissions from both parties, the Fair Work Commission determined that the ColourPress Production Employees Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2013 did not meet the criteria for a simple agreement. The Commission found that the agreement contained provisions that were not straightforward and had the potential to cause confusion among the employees. Consequently, the application for approval was dismissed. The Commission's decision was based on the conclusion that the agreement's complexity and potential for misinterpretation did not align with the requirements for a simple agreement under the Fair Work Act.

ColourPress Pty Ltd T/A ColourPress

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established